Gilberto’s late development has nothing to do with her taking up singing at a late age or even failing to find success earlier. Rather, she spent many years appearing on other people’s records, until her solo debut in 2000 which was produced by the late great Suba. Gilberto’s musical provenance is impressive. Her father is song-writer, João Gilberto, her mother, the singer, Miúcha.

On her new album, the mix of Portuguese and English language songs is more balanced than on the first album, an indication of her international success. ‘Simplesmente’ is the first track, which is sung in both languages. It’s a beautiful introduction to the album, beginning with piano, then percussion, before Bebel’s voice enters, like a soft husky human sax. Later the music swells up with the addition of strings from The London Session Orchestra. And her voice at times resembles the strings, when she hums along to the melody.

Her mother, Miúcha, appears on the next track, ‘Aganjú,’ in the backing vocals. This is a more up tempo song, with a slightly more electronic sound at times. ‘All Around’ follows, a return to the dreamy rhythm of bossa, with a melancholy air. “Do you know how it is without anyone?” she sings. This is one of the best songs on the album, and one of the most personal.

The beat moves up a gear again for ‘River Song,’ with the inclusion of a flute and the strings of The London Session Orchestra. This is a beautiful, mood lifting track, with strong latin percussion. ‘Every Day You’ve Been Away’ is next, and suddenly the sound is stripped down to Bebel’s husky voice and the backing of an acoustic guitar. Only an additional backing vocal complicates matters. This song harks back to the simplicity of ‘Samba e Amor’ on ‘Tanto Tempo.’ It’s proof that electronic programming and a range of instruments aren’t always needed.

‘Cada Beijo’ is the sixth song, up beat, moving away from the sound of traditional bossa. This is a sophisticated, twenty-first century track. ‘O Caminho’ follows and here we have two Portuguese tracks back to back. But the interchanging of faster and slower tempos continues. This laid back song conjures up the image of a summer night, or perhaps a jazz bar somewhere. It’s the sound of night, but a city night.

‘Baby,’ which was written by the great singer-songwriter Caetano Veloso, has a more playful sound without moving too far from the sound of ‘Cada Beijo.’ “You know, it’s time now to learn Portuguese,” she sings at one point. With music like this coming out of Brazil, she has a point.

‘Céu Distante’ is one of the shortest tracks on the album, and it’s closer to the trademark Bebel Gilberto sound. Soft, husky, dreamy, with a trippy use of percussion. ‘Winter’ on the other hand looks back to earlier bossa with its trombone, harmonica and flute, but it quickly switches to a more modern sound. All the same, the golden age of bossa is in that song. It’s one of the more sublime tracks on the album, one you want to lie down to listen to.

‘Jabuticaba’ is one of a number of tracks that has Carlinhos Brown guesting on backing. Indeed, he co-wrote this one with Gilberto. Brown is another big name in Brazilian music. Where ‘Tanto Tempo’ ended with an upbeat song, Gilberto this time chooses to go down beat. ‘Next To You’ has almost a lullaby sound to it.

And so the album ends, gently, quietly. Anyone with any sense or taste will go right back to the beginning and listen to it all over again.

Kara Kellar Bell is a film and media graduate from the West of Scotland, with a passion for European novels, French films, silent cinema, and Brazilian music (everything from Daniela Mercury and other pop stars through to bossa nova). As a writer, she likes to have room to move around creatively, so she’s not located in one genre. She writes realism and also stories of a more fantastic nature, usually grounded to some extent in the real world. She also takes delight in writing across the sexual spectrum, and as a bisexual, considers it important to remind people that things are not always black and white, either/or, in sexuality or in gender. She is currently completing her first novel. For a selection of Kara’s writing on the Showcase section of this site, click here

© 2004 Laura Hird All rights reserved.